


You Did Good, Kid

by TheJediAssassinGirl



Category: Women's Soccer RPF
Genre: F/F, National Women's Soccer League, US Women's Soccer National Team, Women's world Cup 2015
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-10-31
Updated: 2018-01-07
Packaged: 2019-01-27 01:19:57
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 12
Words: 10,738
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12570500
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheJediAssassinGirl/pseuds/TheJediAssassinGirl
Summary: Thalia Skywalker is only seventeen when she gets called up to the US Women's National Team to play in the 2015 Women's World Cup. Will she prove the naysayers wrong and help push the team to victory, or will she fall short?





	1. Prologue

**Author's Note:**

> A less cringey version of one of my first USWNT fanfictions. (the cringey one is still up on Wattpad. It's called Squirt.)

The year is 2015. The conference room of the Colorado hotel is buzzing with conversation and laughter. Everyone is catching up with old friends, teasing them about the NWSL season, looking at pictures of pets or kids or significant others.  
Off to the side, a girl stands by herself. She’s quite a bit younger than the other women in the room, and a lot smaller, too. She stands uncomfortably, shifting nervously from foot to foot. She glances around at all the other women, wondering whether or not she should try to join a conversation. She decides against it. These are people she’s looked up to for years. She doesn’t want to mess up and embarrass herself, so she just stays where she is. She may as well be invisible. She’s a long way from her home in St. Louis, from her school, from her team. Will her team support her? Will they watch her friendlies and cheer for her, or will they just mutter rude things behind her back?  
The girl sighs, pushing those thoughts out of her head. She has to focus. She’s got more pressing matters at hand. After all, she’s just been called up to the senior USWNT.


	2. The Kid

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A new player is introduced to the team

Abby Wambach’s P.O.V.

I walked into the conference room with a grin on my face. It felt good to be back.

“Abby!” Sydney Leroux yelled.

“Hey, Syd!” I said, making my way over to where she and Megan Rapinoe are standing. “Hey, Pinoe!”

“Isn’t it about time for you to retire?” Pinoe asked. “You’re getting old!”

“I’m 35!” I protested.

“Yeah!” Pinoe said. “That’s _old!_ ” “Oh, shut up,” I said, shoving her. She laughed. “How are Dom and Sera?”

“Dom is great!” Syd said enthusiastically. “He’s gonna take the citizenship test soon!”

“Nice!” I replied. “The sooner the better. We need him on the Men’s team, or else they may never stop sucking.”

“Sera’s on tour,” Pinoe said with a pout.

“Aww, so there’s no one to be your cuddle buddy?” Syd teased, bumping Pinoe's shoulder with her own.

“I’m surprised you lasted this long,” I added. “Isn’t she, like, 90% of your impulse control?” Pinoe’s pout got bigger.

“You guys are _mean_ ,” she whined.

“Hey, I heard we got a new player,” Syd said, changing the subject.

“Really?” I asked. “I wonder who it is.”

“Maybe her,” Pinoe said, pointing to a girl standing near the wall. The girl was small and slim. She couldn’t have been older than seventeen. She had tan skin, green eyes, freckles, and long black hair with red streaks braided down her back.

“She looks like she’s still in high school,” I commented.

“Yeah,” Syd agreed. “But some high schoolers these days have mad skills.” I shrugged.

“Guess we’ll find out,” I said. Our coach, Jill Ellis, walked into the room.

“Everybody sit down!” She yelled. We all complied.

“Welcome to training camp!” Jill said once she had everyone's attention. “This camp will be in preparation for two friendlies against New Zealand. I want to see you playing hard, but I also want to see you playing smart. The World Cup is less than two months away, and if anyone gets hurt, there will be issues, understood?”

“Understood, coach!” We all chorused.

“Good,” Jill said. “Now, before I get to roommates and all that, I'd like to introduce your new teammate. Thalia, come on up here.” The girl I saw before made her way up to the front of the room. Her brilliant green eyes darted around the room nervously.

“Go ahead and introduce yourself,” Jill prompted. “Tell us your name, your age, and any other information you think we need to know.”

“Okay,” the girl said. I heard her voice shaking a little. “I’m Thalia Skywalker. I’m seventeen. I’m a forward, and I live in St. Louis.” Becky and Lori cheer. “Uh… I like gaming,” Thalia said. Everyone smiled. We probably could have guessed that fact based on the _Legend of Zelda_ tank top she wore, but no one said anything. “And…um…that’s it, I guess,” Thalia finished. Blushing, she went back to her seat. Jill posted the roommate list on the projection  screen. 

Roommate list:

Abby and Christie

Alex and Allie

Becky and HAO

Syd and Lori

Pinoe and KO

Hope and Carli

Ali and Ash

JJ and Press

Boxxy and Alyssa

Tobin and Thalia

Moe and Kling

Cheney and Arod

“Curfew is at 11 PM,” Jill said. “That means I don't want to see any lights on past then. Breakfast starts at 7:30 and ends promptly at 9. Lunch is at noon, and will be eaten at the field unless otherwise specified, and dinner is from 7:30 PM to 8:30 PM. Attendance at team meals is mandatory unless you are literally puking your guts out.” Jill looked pointedly at Ali and Ash, who were known to skip meals in order to have sex. The pair blushed. “That is all,” Jill said, smirking slightly. “You may head to your rooms now.”


	3. Roommates

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tobin gets to know Thalia a little better

Tobin Heath’s P.O.V.

After getting my key card from Jill, I made my way up to my room. Opening the door, I saw that I had beat Thalia to it. For a moment, I considered putting my stuff on a bed and staking my claim, but I decided against it. The kid was probably scared enough without me using my veteran card. A few minutes later, Thalia came in, lugging her heavy suitcase behind her. She was slightly out of breath, like she’d taken the stairs instead of the elevator.

“Hi,” she said, brushing the stray hairs out of her face.

“Hey,” I replied, walking over to her and holding out my hand for her to shake. “I’m Tobin.”

“I know,” she said, blushing.

“Okay…” I said.

“Sorry!” she said quickly, blushing even more. “I didn’t mean to be rude or creepy or anything, I’ve been a big fan of the team for a while now, so I know who everyone is.”

“I see,” I replied. “Pick a bed, any bed.” Thalia giggled, and put her stuff at the foot of the bed closer to the window.

“Good job,” I said. Thalia looked at me quizzically, raising an eyebrow. “You passed your first test,” I said. I tried to keep my expression deadpan, but I couldn’t help but grin.

“Oh, you bum!” Thalia said as she plopped down on her bed.

“Whatever,” I said, still smiling. “I was gonna take this bed anyway. I like your shirt.”

“Huh?” Thalia said, confused by the sudden change of topic.

“Your shirt,” I said, pointing to her “University of Hyrule Fencing Team” tank top. “I like it.”

“Oh!” she said. “Thank you!” I laughed.

“What’s your favorite _Zelda_ game?” I asked.

“I don’t know,” she replied. “I like all of them!”

“Come on!” I said. “That’s not an answer!” she stuck her tongue out at me.

“Well I do!” she said. “I can’t pick a favorite! _Ocarina of Time_ is a classic, _Skyward Sword_ and _Breath of the Wild_ are masterpieces, and _Wind Waker, Phantom Hourglass,_ and _Spirit Tracks_ are super awesome.”

“Fair enough, I guess,” I said. “Why were you out of breath when you came in here?” Thalia shrugged.

“All the elevators were on other floors, and I didn’t feel like waiting for them, so I took the stairs.” she said. “Besides, I need to be fit if I want to keep up with you guys.”

“I don’t think you’ll have a problem with that,” I said. “Jill wouldn’t have called you up if she didn’t think you were ready.”

“Well, yeah, but I still want to be as fit as possible,” she said.

“That seems like a good plan,” I said. Thalia giggled.

 _She’s cute_. I thought to myself.

She hauled her backpack up onto the bed and pulled out a black Nintendo 3DS with gold designs.

“Wait,” I said. “Is that a limited edition 3DS? One of the _Zelda_ ones?”

“Um, yeah?” Thalia replied.

“Whoa,” I said. “How’d you manage to get one? They’re super hard to find!”

“My friend won it from a Taco Bell thing,” Thalia explained. “He didn’t want it, so he gave it to me.”

“Lucky,” I said. “Becky’s gonna have a nerdgasm. You got _Mario Kart_?”

“Yeah,” she replied. Smirking, I took my own DS and my own  _Mario Kart_ cartridge out of my backpack.

“I challenge you,” I said.


	4. First Training

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Thalia attends her first training, makes friends with Becky, and misses dinner

Thalia’s P.O.V.

I was starting to fit in with the team. We had a couple days off to get used to the altitude, and Tobin and I mostly spent those days in our rooms, playing Mario Kart or some other nerdy game against each other. Sometimes Becky Sauerbrunn would join, sometimes Allie Long would, but it was mainly just me and Tobin. Then training started. After breakfast, we got on the bus and drove to the field where we’d play our first friendly against New Zealand. Everyone partnered up and started doing passing drills except me. I stood awkwardly by the bench, unsure of what to do, until I heard a shout. 

“Hey! Thalia, right?” I looked in the direction of the shout. Becky sauerbrunn was standing with her foot on a ball. “Do you need a partner?” she asked. 

“Yeah,” I replied. 

“Great!” she said. “So do I! Come on!” I walked over to her, stopping about ten feet away, and she passed me the ball. I passed it back to her.

“You’re from St. Louis, right?” she asked. 

“Yeah,” I replied. 

“Cool!” she said. “I am too. And so is Lori. I live in Portland now, but I miss St. Louis. Portland’s great and all, but there’s no frozen custard and no gooey butter cake.” I laughed. Becky grinned. 

“What high school do you go to?” she asked.

“Crossroads.” I replied. “It’s a private school. It’s on DeBaliviere, right up the street from the history museum.” Becky nodded.

“Gotcha.” she said. 

“Where did you go to high school?” I asked. 

“Ladue,” she said. 

“Some of my classmates went there.” I said. 

“I’m not surprised.” Becky said. “Are you excited?”

“For what?” I asked. 

“For the game!” Becky said. “No one told you? After this, we’re playing New Zealand again in Busch Stadium!” 

“Really?” I asked.

“Really!” Becky replied.

“Sweet!” I said. “We can show the gals around!”

“Hell yeah we can!” she said, grinning. The two of us got to know each other more as practice went on. We were on the same team for the end-of-practice scrimmage, and we worked great together. After practice, I got changed and sat down on the bus. A few minutes later, tobin sat down next to me. 

“Hey,” she said.

“Hey,” I replied.

“Sorry for leaving you in the lurch,” she said. “Allie Long and I have a thing. We’re always partners for drills and stuff.”

“It’s ok,” I said. “Becky and I were partners.” Tobin nodded. 

“Glad you found someone to practice with,” she said. The bus drove back to the hotel, and Tobin and I went up to our room. We each sat on our respective beds. My body seemed to let out a sigh of relief as it hit the mattress, and before I knew it, I was sound asleep.

Tobin’s P.O.V.

My phone alarm went off, telling me that it was 7:25, time to go down to dinner. 

“Hey, kid,” I said, not looking at Thalia’s bed. “Dinner time.” there was no response. I glanced over at the other bed, and saw Thalia curled up in a ball, sound asleep. She looked so adorable like that, I regretted having to wake her up. I got up and walked over to her. 

“Hey,” I said, shaking her gently. “Dinner time.” 

“Nooooooo,” she whined as she rolled over, clearly not wanting to get up. I shook her again, a bit harder this time. 

“Kiddo, it’s time to go eat,” I said. This time, I didn’t even get a whine in response. There was no getting her up. I sighed, and tucked her in before going downstairs. 

“Tobin!” Jill’s voice rang across the dining room. I walked over to her.

“Yes, coach?” I asked. 

“Where’s your roommate?” Jill asked. 

“Upstairs,” I replied. “She’s asleep. I couldn’t wake her up.”

“Is something wrong with her?” Jill asked. 

“I don’t think so,” I said. “She’s probably just worn out from training. Believe me, I tried to wake her up, but she wouldn’t get out of bed.”

“Very well,” Jill sighed. “If she wakes up after dinner and wants food, give her a granola bar or something.” 

“Will do,” I said. I grabbed a plate of food and walked over to the table where Alex, Allie, Ash, and Ali sat. 

“Hey Harry,” Allie said. 

“Sup, Harry,” I replied, sitting down. 

“Where’s your roomie?” Ash asked. “We saved a seat for her.”

“She’s sleeping in our room,” I replied. “I think practice wore her out. She’s probably not used to all-day training.”

“Awwww,” Ali said. 

“She is pretty cute,” Alex said. Allie smacked her arm. “Ow!” Alex said. “Babe! Just because she’s cute doesn’t mean I want to date her! I mean, I think Ali’s cute, but that doesn’t mean I want to date her!”

“Don’t make me laugh, Alex!” Ali said, grinning. “You know that if we were both single, you’d date me the first chance you got!”

“You’re not helping!” Alex huffed, making all of us laugh.

“You gonna make a move on her, Tobs?” Ash asked. 

“I don’t know.” I said. “I dunno if I like her in that way. I don’t even know if she’s into girls.”

“She plays soccer, Harry,” Allie said. “Of course she’s into girls.”

“Playing soccer doesn’t automatically make you a lesbian,” I said. “Syd is straight.” 

“Yeah,” Alex said. “But Syd is our token straight person, so she doesn’t count.” I rolled my eyes. 

“Even if I knew she was gay, or bi, or pan, or whatever, I don’t think I’d ask her out yet,” I said. “She’s got enough going on without having to worry about making things awkward with me.” Ash shrugged. 

“Fair enough, I guess,” she said. We spent the rest of dinner talking and laughing. When I went upstairs, Thalia was sprawled on the bed like a starfish, on top of the covers again. She had changed into an oversized t-shirt and sleep shorts. My snack drawer was open and one of my chocolate peanut butter granola bars was missing. I smiled, closed the drawer, and tucked her in again before going to bed myself.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> For anyone who doesn't know, frozen custard and gooey butter cake are St. Louis delicacies. Frozen custard is like frozen yogurt but thicker and better, and gooey butter cake is a cake with a cake/cookie layer on the bottom and a layer with a cheesecake-like texture on top.


	5. First Game

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Thalia's first game

Third person P.O.V.

The day of the USA vs New Zealand game was bright and sunny. There was a buzz of energy as the team went down for breakfast. Jill came in, grabbed a yogurt and some fruit, taped the starting lineup to the wall, and left. As soon as she was gone, everyone rushed to see the paper. Abby elbowed everyone out of her way, stood on a chair, and read it out loud.

“Forwards: Alex and Thalia,” she said, her voice carrying over the tense players in the room. “Midfielders: Carli, Tobin, Moe, Cheney. Defenders: Kriegs, Broon, kling, KO. Goalie: Hope. Carli’s the captain.” Thalia was speechless. She sat, staring up at Abby and the list in her hands. She was trembling. 

“I’m… starting?” she whispered. Tobin clapped her on the back. 

“Nice job, kid!” the midfielder said.

“There must be some mistake,” Thalia said. “I can’t be starting!” Hope Solo took the list out of Abby’s hands and gave it to Thalia. 

“You’re starting, kid,” she said, smiling. Thalia stared long and hard at her name, printed right next to Alex’s. Then, she got up and ran upstairs. 

“What’s wrong with her?” Abby asked. 

“I’ll go check on her,” Tobin said, running after the tiny forward. She knocked on the door to their room. 

“Kiddo?” she called. “Are you in there?”

“Yeah,” Thalia’s shaky voice replied. 

“Can I come in?” Tobin asked. There was a moment’s pause.

“Yeah,” Thalia said. Tobin inserted her key card and entered the room. Thalia was sitting on her bed, knees pulled up to her chest, shaking violently. Tobin sat down next to her and draped her arm over Thalia’s shoulder.

“What’s wrong?” she asked. “You’re getting your first start with the national team! This is great!”

“I can’t do it!” Thalia said. “It’s too much pressure! What if I screw up? Then people will hate me!” 

“Hey,” Tobin said sternly. “Look at me.” Thalia didn’t. “Look at me!” Tobin said, a little more forcefully. Thalia looked up at Tobin, her bright green eyes wide and nervous. “You are a forward,” Tobin said. “If you mess up, if you lose the ball, so what? There are ten other people on the field who will fix your mistake.”

“But--” Thalia protested.

“But nothing,” Tobin interrupted her. “Jill made the decision to start you because you have been killing it in practice. You’re gonna play great and the fans are gonna love you. Trust me, ok?”

“Ok, I guess,” Thalia said. She stopped shaking. Tobin hugged her. 

“Come on,” she said. “Let’s get you some breakfast.” Thalia nodded and allowed tobin to guide her back downstairs. The team spent the day relaxing until it was time to get ready for the game. Thalia spent the bus ride to the game sitting next to Tobin in nervous silence. She got dressed and laced up her cleats, then slid her shinguards into her socks.

“Hey, mind if I braid your hair?” Amy Rodriguez asked. Thalia jumped.

“Oh! No, not at all,” she replied. Amy sat down behind her and started brushing out Thalia’s long black hair.

“Any requests?” she asked. Thalia shrugged.

“I don’t really care,” she said.

“Alright.” Arod said. Thalia sat still while arod fishtail braided her hair. 

“Thanks, Arod,” she said once her fellow forward had finished. 

“Anytime, kiddo,” Arod replied.

“Time to line up!” Abby yelled. “Come on!” everyone lined up in the tunnel, each player taking the hand of a very excited child, and walked out on the pitch to thunderous applause. The starting eleven for each team lined up at the center of the pitch, and their names were announced to the crowd.

“And the newcomer,” the announcer’s voice boomed. “The youngest player to get a senior women’s national team call up, number forty-two, Thalia Skywalker!” Thalia smiled shyly as she turned and waved at the stands. There weren’t any cheers, as there had been for the other U.S. players, only the polite applause that the New Zealanders had been greeted with. Thalia’s face fell. 

“It’s ok,” Tobin whispered, giving her hand a discreet squeeze. “No one gets a standing ovation on their first cap.” thalia nodded, but her confidence was still plummeting. Carli and the New Zealand captain made their way to the center circle, and the rest of the teams went to the sidelines and huddled up. Moments later, carli joined. 

“They have the ball first,” she reported. “But we’ll have the wind advantage, at least for the first half. We need to possess the ball. If we do that, we should be ok. Plus, we’re a faster team overall than they are.” everyone nodded in understanding.

“USA ON THREE!” Carli shouted. “ONE! TWO! THREE!”

“USA!” everyone yelled. They took the field. The whistle blew, and the New Zealand forward started out with the ball. Quick as a wink, the ball was at Tobin’s feet instead. Tobin dribbled up the field, using her quick footwork to make sure she kept possession, then she passed it to Alex. She crossed it, but there was no one there to receive the cross. Or so she thought. At the very last moment, Thalia came out of nowhere and slid for the ball, managing to kick it past the goalie and into the goal. For a moment, the whole stadium was silent as everyone tried to process what had happened. Then, the stadium erupted into cheers. Tobin pulled Thalia to her feet and hugged her. More teammates joined the embrace, wrapping their arms around the two women, tousling Thalia’s hair, yelling happily. Thalia scored two more goals, Alex scored one, and Tobin scored one. The New Zealanders only managed to score once, putting the final score at 5-1, USA. After the game, all of the players were given a Sharpie and told to go sign autographs. Despite her success in the game, no one seemed to want Thalia’s signature. There were shouts all around of “Tobin!” “Alex!” “Carli!” “Abby!” but Thalia did not hear her name once. Dejected, she walked back into the locker room, changed, and walked towards the bus. As she did, she heard running footsteps behind her.

“Miss! Excuse me, miss!” a high pitched voice called out. Thalia stopped and turned around. A tiny girl in an Abby Wambach jersey was running towards her. If thalia had to guess, she’d have said the kid was no more than five years old. Her shoulder length black hair was in pigtails, and her face was painted with red, white, and blue stripes. Thalia knelt down so she was at the girl’s height.

“Can I help you, sweetie?” she asked.

“Can I have your autograph?” the tiny girl asked excitedly, holding out a notebook and a pen.

“Victoria…” the girl’s mother said, coming up behind the child.

“Please?” the girl, Victoria, added. Thalia laughed. 

“Of course!” she said. She took the pen, turned to a blank page of the notebook, and scribbled her signature on the paper. 

“I’m gonna be just like you when I grow up,” Victoria declared proudly. 

“Are you now?” Thalia asked, smiling.

“Uh huh!” Victoria said. “I’m gonna play for the national team an’ run real fast an’ score goals an’ stuff!”

“Well you’d better start practicing,” Thalia said. “That’s how I got to be so good. I practiced long and hard.” by this time, Thalia’s teammates were emerging from the locker room and getting on the bus.

“Victoria, it’s time to go,” her mother said.

“Ok mama!” Victoria said. “Thank you, miss Skywalker!”

“You’re welcome, sweetie.” Thalia said. “Good luck!” as Victoria and her mother walked away, Thalia gathered her stuff and got on the bus. She plopped into her seat next to Tobin, a smile on your face.

“Man, I’m exhausted,” Tobin said. “Playing a whole ninety minutes, then having to deal with screaming fans? I’m ready to sleep for about a decade!” Thalia laughed. “What happened with you?” Tobin asked. “I saw you leave the field early.”

“No one wanted my autograph,” Thalia said. “Well, no one except the little girl I was talking to.”

“She was a cutie,” Tobin said. 

“Yeah,” Thalia agreed. “She says she wants to be like me when she grows up.” Tobin smiled. 

“You know, as a professional athlete, there are some phrases I get tired of hearing,” she said. “But ‘I wanna be like you when I grow up’ isn’t one of them.”


	6. Home Again

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Thalia and the team arrive in St. Louis, and Thalia, Lori, and Becky are glad to be home

Third Person P.O.V.

A couple days after the game, the whole team dressed in their comfiest clothes. It was a travel day. They were on their way to St. Louis. In the airport, they bought snacks and food for the flight, then boarded their private plane. 

“Whoa,” Thalia said as she stepped on. The whole plane looked like first class in a normal plane. The seats were comfortable, and there was plenty of legroom. Thalia took a window seat, and Tobin slid into the aisle seat next to her. 

“Chocolate?” The midfielder asked, pulling a Caramello bar out of her backpack.

“How much chocolate did you buy?” Thalia asked, pretending to be disapproving but taking the candy anyway. 

“Enough,” Tobin said with a wink and a lopsided grin. She pulled a Twix bar out of the bag and took a large bite. “Wanna play  _ Mario Kart _ ?” she asked, her mouth full of chocolate, caramel, and cookie.

“Depends,” Thalia said, grinning back at Tobin. “Are you gonna be a sore loser when I kick your ass?” Tobin pouted. 

“Rude,” she said. Thalia shrugged and grinned. 

“Hey, the truth hurts,” she said.

“You all better not be getting ready to play  _ Mario Kart _ without me!” Becky yelled. 

“You can join if you can handle Tobin throwing a fit when she loses,” Thalia said, bumping Tobin with her shoulder. Becky laughed. 

“I think I can deal,” she said.

“Assholes,” Tobin mumbled.

“You know you love us,” Thalia said.

“Yeah yeah,” Tobin said. She pulled out her DS, and Thalia and Becky followed suit. 

“Ha! I win again!” Thalia crowed as yoshi crossed the finish line in first, Becky following close behind as Daisy, and Tobin coming in third as Toad. 

“The  _ audacity _ ,” Tobin huffed. “I was your roommate! I made you feel welcome! I shared my snacks with you!” 

“It’s not my fault you suck at  _ Mario Kart! _ ” Thalia said.

“See if I ever share my chocolate with you again!” Tobin said. Becky laughed.

“You two fight like an old married couple!” She said. Tobin and Thalia both turned red. 

“Shut up,” they both muttered. This made Becky laugh harder. Tobin and Thalia put their DSs away. Tobin pulled out  _ Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone, _ and Thalia took out her sketchbook. As Tobin became absorbed in the story, Thalia drew her until the hum of the jet engines lulled them both to sleep.

Hope’s P.O.V.

I wrapped my arms around Carli, kissing her behind her ear. 

“Fucking tease,” she mumbled. I chuckled.

“If you score against New Zealand next week, maybe I can reward you,” I said with a smirk. Carli turned and kissed me. I kissed her back. She hummed happily as my tongue entered her mouth. 

“Hey you two!” Ash said. “If you’re gonna fuck, do it in the bathroom!” I flipped her off. 

“You don’t have room to talk, Harris,” I said. “You’d take Ali in public if you had the chance.” Ash shrugged. 

“Maybe so,” she said. “But that doesn’t mean I wanna see my friend and fellow keeper knuckle deep in my soon-to-be-captain.” I rolled my eyes and kissed Carli again. She giggled as she kissed back.

“Go to sleep,” I told her. “I’ll wake you up when we land.” An hour or two later, we touched down in St. Louis, Missouri. I shook Carli awake and kissed her forehead. 

“Welcome to St. Louis, babe,” I said. She smiled. 

“Why thank you, milady,” she said, giggling. We got off the plane, went into the airport for a pee break, then boarded the bus to go to the hotel. 

“Hey coach, where are we staying?” Becky called.

“The Moonrise Hotel,” Jill replied.

“All  _ right _ !” Becky said, grinning as she high fived Thalia.

“That’s right up the street from my school!” Thalia said. “Maybe we could go visit!”

“And it’s in the Loop!” Becky added. “We can have some fun on our day off.”

“Yeah!” Thalia agreed. “But we’ve gotta go to Ted Drewes.” 

“Oh yeah,” Becky said. “Definitely.”

“What are you two talking about?” Pinoe asked, confused. “The Loop? Ted Drewes? What are those?”

“Ted Drewes is frozen custard,” Thalia explained. “It’s like soft serve ice cream, but better.”

“And the Loop is the nightlife place,” Lori added. “It’s got everything. Stores, restaurants, bars, music venues, even a movie theater!”

“I’m sure you’re all very excited, but everyone listen up please!” Jill said, calling our attention to the front of the bus where she stood. “Same rules apply as last camp. Same mealtimes and everything. You will have new roommates. I’m going to read the list now, so pay attention.”

Roommate list 

Thalia and Hope

Carli and Tobin 

Krieger and Alex

Allie and Ash

Becky and Lori

Pinoe and Sydney

Moe and Cheney 

Kling and Arod 

JJ and Boxxy

Press and Alyssa 

Abby and Kelley

HAO and Christie

Thalia smiled at me. I smiled back, a little surprised. Usually rookies stayed as far away from me as possible. They’d probably heard all the bad things the media said about me, and decided to stay away. Thalia was different, though. She’d willingly sat next to me at mealtimes once or twice. She didn’t seem scared or intimidated. It was refreshing. We pulled up to the hotel and walked up to our rooms. I put my stuff down on the bed closest to the door. I figured Thalia would want the one by the window. 

“You’re from here, right?” I asked. “Are you going to visit your parents?” Thalia looked down.

“They’re dead,” she mumbled. “Have been since I was eight.”

“Oh,” I said. I didn’t know what else to say. “I’m…I’m sorry.”

“It’s ok,” Thalia said. “I've been self sufficient since then.” She pulled back the curtains and looked out the window. 

“My school is that way,” she said pointing. I joined her at the window.

“Where?” I asked. “Can you see it from here?” Thalia nodded. 

“See that big radio tower?” She asked.

“Yeah,” I replied.

“The school’s right under that,” she said. “We practice in forest park. I wonder whether Jill would let me go crash practice and say hi.”

“You can ask her at dinner,” I said. To my surprise, not only did Jill allow Thalia to greet her teammates the next day, she also gave the rookie passes so her team could go to the game for free and come on the pitch after the game. After dinner, she and I went back up to our room. We both got changed and got in bed.

“Sleep tight, kiddo,” I said. “You’ve got a big day tomorrow.”

“Night, Hope,” she said, yawning.

“Night, Thalia,” I replied.


	7. Practice With Friends

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Thalia visits her school teammates

Thalia’s P.O.V.

We used our day off to explore the city. Becky and I lead the team around St. Louis, using the MetroLink train to get to different places. We piled into taxis to get to Ted Drewes. We visited the arch and the city museum. By 3:00, I was at the hotel and changed into workout clothes, soccer socks, and slides. My soccer bag was slung over my shoulder. I hopped on the train, rode it to forest park, and walked to the field.

“Hey, look who it is!” My coach, Ben Pine, called out. “The new local celebrity!” There was no sarcasm in his voice. Everyone turned to look at me, and grins broke out. My friends Faith Blanc and Kieran Pullman, who we called Tree, ran to hug me.

“What are you doing here?!” Faith asked. “Aren’t you supposed to be training with your team?” 

“We have an off day, and coach said I could come visit,” I replied. “We’re really close. At the Moonrise.”

“Gotcha,” Faith said. 

“She also gave me these,” I said, pulling the passes out of my bag as I sat down to put my cleats and shin guards on. “These let you guys go to the game for free, and you can go on the field afterwards.”

“You’re kidding,” Tree said. 

“Nope,” I said, handing the passes to Ben. “A special honor for my teammates. What are we waiting for? Let’s practice!” We started doing drills. 

“Where’s Lauren?” I asked, looking around and not seeing my least favorite teammate. Lauren Weber was an asshole, plain and simple. She was racist, homophobic, and transphobic. She did her very best to make my life, and the lives of all the other LGBT+ students at crossroads, hell. She was on the soccer team, but it was clear that she couldn’t care less about the sport. She was only on the team for a sports credit.

“She said she’s sick,” Tree said, pulling a face.

“Obviously she just couldn't be bothered to show up,” Faith added, rolling her eyes. 

“Good,” I said. “I wasn’t looking forward to having to deal with her.”

“She’s gonna kiss your ass now, though,” Tree pointed out. “You’re famous now, and she’ll want to mooch off your fame.”

“I know,” I said. “That’s why I excluded her when I told Jill how many passes I needed. She’s not coming to the game.” Faith and Tree both grinned. 

“Nice one,” Faith said. We practiced until about 5:30, then I said goodbye to the team and caught the train back to the hotel.

“Hey, kiddo,” Hope said. “Did you have fun?”

“Yep,” I said. I changed out of my practice clothes and into sweats and a t-shirt, and flopped onto my bed. It had been a good day.


	8. Home Game

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Thalia, Lori, and Becky get to play in their home stadium. Drama and smut

Thalia’s P.O.V.

Every nerve in my body was tingling with excitement. I could barely sit still on the bus ride over, which made Tobin laugh at me. Lori, Becky, and I were all starting, and we’d all made it our goal to score at least once each. Arod braided my hair again before the game. We walked out into Busch Stadium. I’d been here dozens of times to watch the Cardinals play, but this was different. This time, the thousands of people filling the stands were going to be watching me.

The game started. I was light on my feet. About halfway through the first half, I sent a perfect cross in front of the goal mouth. Lori was there to receive it, neatly putting it in the back of the net. 1-0 US.

“Nice!” I yelled, running to hug her.

“All thanks to your cross!” Lori said. Ten minutes later, Becky cleared the ball out of our defensive third. It was a beautiful kick. The ball soared over us in an arc. I raced after it and volleyed it into the goal. 2-0 US. Tobin hugged me, lifting me off my feet. The people in the stands were on their feet. The American Outlaws were banging on their drums and chanting. The air seemed to be humming with energy.

“Now you need to get one!” I yelled to Becky.

“I’m workin’ on it, kiddo!” She replied. Lori got the ball. Becky sprinted ahead. Lori passed to her, and Becky headed it into the goal. 3-0. The three of us ran to hug each other as the whistle blew for halftime.

The second half went just as smoothly. Try as they might, the New Zealand team could barely get the ball past the defense, much less past Hope. Carli scored. Abby was subbed in. She scored. Tobin got punched in the face, and I slide tackled the player who did it the first chance I got. The whistle blew, signaling the end of the game. We had won.

After the game, I went around and signed autographs. To my delight, there seemed to be more people clamoring for my signature, and I signed jerseys, shirts, and drawings before going over to where my team was sitting. I stopped short as I saw the one person I thought I wouldn’t see. Lauren Weber was sitting in the second row, wearing a shoddy “Skywalker 42” shirt that she’d obviously made online. 

“What’s she doing here?!” I hissed to Faith and Tree.

“She made up some bullshit story about Meg being sick,” Faith whispered back. 

“It’s obvious she just bullied Meg into giving up her pass,” Tree added. Throughout this exchange, Lauren had been to busy preening and taking selfies, running her hand through her bleached-blonde hair, to notice that I was there. Then, she looked up from her phone and saw me.

“Bestie!” she squealed. “You were sooooooooooo good! Can I have your autograph?!” 

“If you ever wanted any favors from me, you should have thought about that before you bullied me at school,” I snapped. “You were not invited to this game, and if you don’t leave now, I’ll call security on you.” Lauren’s face turned red, then white. She got up and ran out of the stadium as fast as she could. Faith high fived me. 

“That was awesome!” she said. 

“That felt good,” I said. “Wanna come on the field?” a groundskeeper opened a door so that my teammates could go on the pitch, and I led them around and introduced them to my teammates.

“So you’re Tree,” Hope said, shaking Tree’s hand. “Thalia told me about you. Said you didn’t really want to be a goalie at first.” 

“N-no, ma’am, I didn’t,” Tree stammered. Hope laughed.

“Neither did I,” she said. “I was a forward before I was a keeper. I wanted to be scoring goals, not saving them. You’re just like me.” Tree blushed. Faith laughed at her. We spent the rest of the time hanging out on the pitch, my school teammates talking to my national teammates, getting tips, learning new moves, getting autographs. Finally, the grounds crew arrived and told us that we had to leave, so we did. The Crossroads team caught the Metro back to school, where their parents were waiting, and I changed and got on the bus. Tobin had saved a spot for me.

“Hey,” she said. “Good game, superstar.” I laughed.

“Right back at ya, nutmeg queen,” I said. 

“Who was that girl you were talking to before the team came on the pitch?” Tobin asked. “The one who ran away?”

“Oh, that was Lauren Weber,” I said. “She’s a bully. She wasn’t even supposed to be here, but she weaseled her way in and pretended to be my best friend, so I told her to get the fuck out.” Tobin laughed. 

“Nice,” she said. 

Hope’s P.O.V.

“Hey, kid?” I asked when we got back to the hotel. “Would you mind swapping with Carli for tonight?”

“Not at all,” Thalia said. “Just no sex on my bed, please.” I gaped at her. 

“What?” She said. “I’m not a child. I could see you and Carli doing fuck me eyes at each other all game. Besides, Pinoe told me what roomie swaps mean.” I chuckled. 

“I  _ guess _ we can stay off your bed,” I said. “Grab your pjs, toiletries, and a change of clothes, because I don’t think you’re gonna want to come back in here.” As she grabbed her stuff, I texted Carli. 

_ We have the room to ourselves tonight. Wear something sexy. ;-) -Hope _

_ Will do. See ya in a bit, stud. -Carli _

As soon as Thalia left the room, I started setting up. Carli and I had an interesting sex life. We’d dabbled in a little bit of everything, but we’d settled on just tying each other up. Well, that and some spanking. And she liked seeing me in leather. I finished attaching the restraints to the bed, grabbed my outfit, my strap on harness, and a large dildo, and got changed. I looked in the mirror and smirked. The leather crop top I’d chosen was perfect, ending just under my boobs. My leather pants hugged my legs, showing off my toned muscles and the bulge from my strap on. There was a knock on the door. I opened it. Carli stood outside in a t-shirt and sweats. I let her in. 

“I told you to wear something sexy, Carli,” I said. “And while you look hot in everything, I think your current outfit really counts.” Carli smirked. 

“You haven’t seen what's underneath yet,” she said, running a hand over my leather-covered breast. I moaned as my nipple hardened. Carli smirked.

“You fucking tease,” I growled. 

“Sit down, miss Solo,” she purred, her voice dropping an octave. “Let me show you what I’ve got.” 

“I’m intrigued,” I said, sitting down on the bed. Carli played a slow, sexy song from her phone, her body swaying in time to the music. She lifted her shirt over her head, revealing a strapless, sheer, lacy red white and blue bra. A second later, her pants came off to, revealing a matching thong. 

“Does this meet with your approval, miss Solo?” She asked. 

“Fuck yes,” I growled. “Get on the bed and take the thong off.” Carli smirked. 

“As you wish,” she said, complying. I cuffed her down tight. She was spread out, her dripping pussy easily accessible. 

“Are you ready to take my cock?” I asked. 

“Yes,” she gasped as she saw me slowly pulling my pants down, revealing my strap on. 

“Oh  _ yes _ ,” she moaned as she saw the toy I’d chosen. It was her favorite. It was huge and thick, and it filled her right up. I pressed the tip right against her entrance, pulling her bra down to play with her nipples as I did so.

“Please, Hope!” She whimpered.

“You want me inside you?” I asked. “You want this fat cock in your tight pussy?”

“Yes! Yes!” Carli begged. She moaned as I slid into her, then squealed as I attached clamps to her nipples. I bottomed out inside her.

“So full,” Carli moaned. I started moving in and out of my girlfriend, loving the noises and facial expressions that Carli made as I did so. As I thrust particularly hard into Carli's pussy, I turned on the harness’s built in vibrator. Carli moaned. So did I. 

“I’m close!” Carli panted. “So close!” I kept thrusting, moaning as the vibrator pressed up against my clit. 

“Cum,” I ordered. Carli came, and so did I. I uncuffed her hands, and she flipped me over and cuffed me in her position, smirking. This was just the start of a wild night.


	9. Shipped?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Thalia discovers people shipping her and Tobin on tumblr, and both women try and hide their emotions from each other.

Thalia’s P.O.V.

I sat on Carli’s bed in Tobin’s room, scrolling through Tumblr, when a picture caught my eye. It was a picture of Tobin and Alex hugging after Alex’s goal in the New Zealand game in Colorado. The caption read “TALEX IS REAL!!” below that, a small argument had started. 

_ Talex isn’t real, Alex is dating Allie! _ One user said.

_ Yeah, and Tobin is dating Press!  _ Another added

_ No, Press is dating JJ. remember? There was that picture of them having a romantic dinner.  _ A third said.

_ I think Tobin and the new girl are dating. _ A fourth chimed in, adding pictures of Tobin hugging me after I scored.

_ You mean Tobin and Thalia? Yeah, I guess they’re cute together.  _ The first user admitted. I chuckled to myself. 

“What’s up?” Tobin asked. 

“People on Tumblr are shipping us,” I replied.

“Are they really?” Tobin said.

“Yeah,” I said, showing her the post. Tobin laughed.

“People are really invested in my love life,” she said. “First they shipped me with Alex, then with Christen, now with you. They must figure that one of them must come true one day.” I laughed, but secretly I hoped that one day, Tobin and I would be together.

“Anyway, you’re going to have zero privacy now,” Tobin went on. “People are gonna wanna know every single detail of your love life: whether you’re single, whether you’re gay, straight, or somewhere in between, who you like on the team, all that. It’s funny most of the time, but it can get annoying.” I nodded. Tobin yawned. “We should probably get some sleep,” she said. 

“Okay,” I replied. Tobin turned out the lights.

“Night, Thalia,” she said. 

“Night, Tobin.” I replied.

Tobin’s P.O.V.

As I heard Thalia’s breathing get slower and deeper, I thought about what i’d told her. As much as being shipped with people annoyed me, I didn’t mind being shipped with Thalia. She was super cute, and as obsessed with soccer as I was. There was also something super attractive about her innocent, nerdy personality.

_ God, Tobin. _ I cursed myself.  _ You could have told her right then and there that you liked her, but you didn’t have the balls to do it. What’s wrong with you?! _ Deciding that there wasn’t much point in staying awake and overthinking everything, I rolled over and fell asleep.

Hours later, I was woken up by a yell. I opened my eyes immediately. Thalia was curled in a tight ball on Carli’s bed, and I could hear her sobbing. 

“Thalia?” I whispered. There was no response, only more crying. I got up and walked over to her. 

“Thalia,” I said again, a little louder this time. I put a hand on her shoulder. “What’s wrong, kiddo?” I asked. She looked up at me, her eyes full of fear, tear streaks on her face. It broke my heart to see her like that.

“N-nightmare,” she stammered.

“I’m sorry,” I said. “Do you want to talk about it?” she shook her head. “Do you want me to sleep in this bed with you?” I asked. 

“You would do that?” Thalia asked. 

“If you’d like,” I replied.

“Yes please,” Thalia said.

“Scootch over, then,” I said. She did, and I laid down next to her, wrapping my arms around her. As soon as I did so, I felt her relax a little, but she was still tense. 

“It’s ok,” I murmured, running my fingers through her long black hair. “You’re ok. I’ve got you. You’re safe with me.” she relaxed even more, snuggling closer to me as she fell asleep. I smiled. “Sleep tight, sweetie,” I whispered as I also fell asleep.

Thalia’s P.O.V.

I woke up in the morning with someone’s arms around me. I turned to see Tobin sleeping peacefully. I blushed, and carefully squirmed out of her arms and went to get ready. Had something happened last night? Were we dating now? I must have spent a lot of time in the bathroom, because Tobin knocked on the door.

“You ok in there, Thalia?” She asked. She sounded concerned.

“Uh, yeah!” I replied. “I’ll be out in a few!” I hurriedly got dressed and brushed my teeth, then opened the door to the bathroom. 

“Are you sure you’re ok?” Tobin asked. 

“Yeah, I’m fine,” I said. “What happened last night?”

“Huh?” Tobin asked. 

“What happened? I just remember falling asleep, then I woke up in your arms.”

“You had a nightmare,” Tobin said. “I asked if you wanted me to sleep in the same bed with you, to help you relax, and you said yes.”

“Oh,” I said. “Ok.” Tobin rubbed the back of her neck, then ran her fingers through her thick brown hair. 

“Sorry if this made things awkward.” she said.

“No, it’s ok,” I said. “That was really nice of you.” Tobin grinned. 

“Anytime,” she said. I smiled.

“Go get dressed, you dork,” I said. “Let’s go eat. I’m starving.”


	10. Harli's Advice

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hope and Carli give Tobin and Thalia some dating advice

Hope’s P.O.V.

After we left St. Louis, we flew to Portland for a game against Mexico. It was our last game before a break, then after the break, we’d go to Canada for the World Cup. Tobin, Alex, Allie, Becky, and HAO were happy to be back home. Thalia was excited to explore the city, but she seemed a little off. We had the same roommates as we’d had in St. Louis, and one night we both settled down to do our own thing. Thalia took out her sketchbook, as she often did, and began to draw, but she looked distracted.

“Is everything alright, kiddo?” I asked. She didn’t respond, and kept doodling on the page.

“Thalia,” I said. She looked up. 

“What?” she asked.

“Is everything alright with you?” I repeated. 

“I guess,” she replied. 

“What’s wrong?” I asked. 

“Nothing’s wrong,” she said. 

“‘I guess’ means something’s wrong,” I said. “I wanna help. What’s wrong?”

“I like Tobin!” she blurted out. 

“Well, she is a pretty awesome girl,” I said. 

“No,” she said. “You don’t get it. I  _ like _ Tobin.”

“Oh,” I said, realizing what she meant. “ _ Oh _ . you mean…”

“Yeah,” Thalia said. “I really,  _ really _ like her. And I don’t know if she likes me back. I mean, we did cuddle once while you and Carli were doing the nasty, but apparently that was just because I had a nightmare and now I don’t know what to do.”

“You could tell her how you feel,” I suggested.

“But what if she doesn’t feel the same way about me?” Thalia asked anxiously. “What if I tell her and that ruins our friendship?”

“If your friendship can be ruined by you telling her that you love her, it’s not really a friendship worth keeping,” I said. “Besides, I think she feels the same way about you.”

“You do?” Thalia asked.

“Yeah,” I said. “Just judging by the way she looks at you. Go talk to her.”

“Maybe later,” she said. I shrugged.

“I don’t care when you do it, just as long as you do it,” I said. “We have an off day soon, maybe you can do it then.” 

“Okay,” Thalia agreed. She returned to her drawing, now less distracted, and i returned to my phone.

Carli’s P.O.V.

“Carli,” Tobin said suddenly. We were both in my room, minding our own business. I could tell my fellow New Jersey midfielder had something on her mind, but I’d decided not to pry. 

“Yeah,” I replied.

“How do you get a girl to like you?” Tobin asked. I stared at her. 

“How do you what?” I asked. Tobin had never shown any indication of wanting to find a girl and settle down. She seemed to be too focused on soccer.

“How do you get a girl to like you?” Tobin repeated. 

“Did someone spike your Gatorade at practice?” I asked. “Where’s this coming from?”

“So let’s say that  _ hypothetically _ , there’s this girl I like,” Tobin said, a blush slowly crawling up her tanned cheeks. “And  _ hypothetically _ , she’s my best friend and I don’t want to make things weird between us but I really want to go out with her. How would I go about asking her on a date?”

“Hypothetically, is her name Thalia Skywalker?” I asked. Tobin turned red.

“Hypothetically,” she mumbled. I grinned. 

“Well,” I said. “If I were you, I would wait until our off day, then I’d take this hypothetical girl around the city, show her my favorite shops, etcetera.”

“And then?” Tobin said, carefully listening to my every word.

“And then I’d take her to a park and give her something,” I said. “A necklace, maybe. Or a book. Or a video game. Something I knew she’d enjoy. And I’d tell her how I felt.” Tobin nodded. I smirked. 

“Let me know how it goes,” I said. Tobin’s blush returned with a vengeance. 

“I don’t-- I never--” she stammered.

“Oh please,” I said. “I know you’re into Thalia. Honestly,  _ everyone  _ knows you’re into her. The way you look at her is a dead giveaway. Let me know how it goes, alright?”

“Alright,” Tobin said grumpily. “I guess I can tell you how it goes.” she pulled out her phone and started planning this day out.

“Uh, Tobin,” I said. 

“Yeah,” she replied

“Maybe before you get too into planning the date, you could actually make sure she actually wants to go with you,” I pointed out. Tobin stuck her tongue out at me, then hurriedly tapped out a message on her phone. A couple seconds later, she smiled as her phone buzzed. I smiled. Those two were about to steal Ali and Ash’s title for cutest couple on the team. 

Hope’s P.O.V

Thalia’s phone buzzed on the bed next to her. She picked it up, read the message, and gasped, a smile spreading across her face.

“What is it?” I asked. 

“Tobin wants to take me around Portland on our off day!” she said. I smiled. 

“Does she now?” I asked. Thalia nodded, and showed me the message.

_ Hey. How about I show you around the city on our day off? _ - _ Tobin _

I laughed. 

“You’d better reply,” I said. Thalia nodded, and quickly typed out a text back. While she did, I texted Carli.

_ Did Tobin ask you for advice about asking Thalia out? -Hope _

_ Yeah, why?- Carli _

_ Thalia asked me for advice about telling Tobin how she feels. -Hope _

_ Awwwwww. -Carli _

_ Yeah. They’re gonna make such a cute couple.-Hope _

_ Agreed-Carli. _


	11. Love

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tobin takes Thalia out for a special day in Portland

Thalia’s P.O.V.

I woke up early on our day off. I dug nervously through my clothes, trying to find something to wear. I wanted to look nice. Not fancy, but nice. I pulled out a thorns jersey, but I tossed it aside. My STLFC jersey soon joined it, as well as my arsenal jersey. I finally settled on my Barcelona jersey and a pair of nice-ish black shorts. I went into the bathroom to shower and change, then I blow dried and brushed my hair. Hope knocked on the door.

“Kiddo, I need to pee!” she said. “Open up!” I laughed, and opened the door. 

“About time,” Hope grumbled, pretending to be mad. “Get out!” I did so, and braided my hair. My phone buzzed, and I picked it up

_ I’m down in the lobby when you’re ready. - Tobin _

_ Okay, I’ll be down in a few! -Thalia _

I grabbed my phone and my wallet and tucked them in my pockets, then slipped my feet into my sandals. 

“I’m off!” I called to Hope, who was still in the bathroom. 

“Okay!” Hope called back. “Good luck! Don’t fuck it up!” i laughed. 

“Thanks, RuPaul!” I said as I left. I took the elevator down to the lobby. As promised, Tobin was waiting there for me. She wore a form-fitting black v-neck, a pair of ripped skinny jeans, and a pair of black converse. Her long-ish brown hair was loose. The shirt and jeans highlighted her toned muscles. She looked hot. 

“Hey,” Tobin said. 

“Hi,” I replied. 

“You ready?” she asked. 

“Yep,” I said. 

“Let’s go, then,” she said. 

“But what about breakfast?” I asked. 

“Don’t worry, I have everything planned out.” Tobin said, smiling mysteriously. “Come on.” she led me outside to where her old blue jeep was parked. The car had obviously seen better days, but it was very Tobin. We both got in, and Tobin drove us to a place called Blue Star Donuts. 

“Cheat day,” she said, winking at me as she got out of the car. I grinned. 

“I won’t tell Dawn,” I replied. 

“Good,” Tobin said. “I knew I could count on you.” we went in, got our donuts, then drove to a nearby park to eat them. Tobin smiled as she watched little kids splashing in the fountain. 

“I love it here,” she said. 

“Me too,” I replied. “Where are we going next?” 

“Powell’s,” Tobin said. “It’s awesome. It takes up an entire city block, and it’s just filled with books.”

“Awesome!” I said. 

“Yeah,” Tobin said. “Ready to go?” 

“You bet!” I said. Tobin smiled. 

“Let’s go, then,” she said. I followed her up the street, and she held the door open for me. I stepped in, and I was in heaven. There were bookshelves from floor to ceiling, all filled with books. I knew there were multiple levels, too, presumably also filled with books. Tobin chuckled as she came in behind me. 

“I promise it’s cooler once you get past the doorway,” she said. I smacked her arm, though not enough to hurt. 

“Dork,” I said. Tobin grinned.

“Maybe so,” she said. “Meet me by the register in an hour, okay? And you’ll probably want one of these.” she tossed me a mesh bag to put my books in.

“Okay,” I said. “See you in an hour.” 

“See ya,” Tobin said. An hour later, we met back up at the register. 

“Damn,” Tobin said, looking at my bag. “That’s quite a haul.” I shrugged

“There’s a lot of good books here,” I said. Tobin took my bag, and went up to the register.

“Hey, what are you doing?” I asked. 

“Paying for the books,” Tobin said.

“I can pay,” I said.

“Well you’re not gonna,” Tobin said, sticking her tongue out. The cashier finished scanning my books, and Tobin swiped her card before i could do anything.

“At least let me pay for yours,” I said. 

“You aren’t gonna leave me alone until I let you do something, are you?” Tobin asked. 

“Nope,” I said. 

“Fine,” Tobin said. “Pay for the books.” she smiled as I did, then we swapped bags. 

“Where to next?” I asked. 

“Wait and see,” Tobin said, grinning. She drove me to what looked like a stockyard for boats.

“What is this place?” I asked, confused.

“You’ll see,” Tobin said. We parked, and walked along the sidewalk until we got to what appeared to be a station for something, but I couldn’t see what it was. Then, what looked like a ski gondola came down the wires that I hadn’t noticed before. It stopped, and the doors opened.

“Come on,” Tobin said. “Get in.”

“Okay,” I said. The gondola began to rise, and the city of Portland laid itself out before us. Across the river, Mount Hood, Mount St. Helens, and Mount Rainier rose above the surrounding landscape like giant volcanic guardians, shielding the Rose City from harm. 

“Whoa,” I said. 

“I know, right?” Tobin said. Her rough, calloused hand slipped into mine. “This is one of my favorite views of Portland. The city just looks so beautiful from up here. I giggled and started humming “A Whole New World” from  _ Aladdin.  _ Tobin laughed. 

“Wow, way to ruin the moment,” she said. 

“I was  _ adding _ to the moment, thank you very much,” I contradicted. Tobin grinned. She rested her elbow on my head. I huffed, and shoved her away playfully. 

“Hey!” she protested. “It’s not my fault you’re short!”

“You bum!” I said. We rode the gondola back down, and got back into the car. We drove to the food truck village that had set itself up near Pioneer Square to get lunch. Tobin got a burger, I got chicken tikka masala, and we found another park to eat in. We spent the rest of the day walking around. Tobin took me to hidden parks, the river walk, spectacular churches, and rooftop gardens. We even took a boat tour of the city. We had dinner at a pizza place called Sizzle Pie, and we got ice cream for dessert. We then returned to the river walk and sat on the bench to watch the sunset.

“Thalia…” Tobin said.

“Yeah?” I asked.

“I-I had fun today,” Tobin stammered. I looked at her in surprise. She was always so cool and collected, I hadn’t imagined that she was capable of getting nervous.

“So did I,” I said. Tobin took a deep breath

“I like you!” she blurted out. “I mean… shit, this wasn’t how this was supposed to go!”

“Hey, it’s okay,” I said. 

“I like you a lot,” Tobin confessed. “You’re really cute, and you’re awesome at soccer, and you’re nice and you’re funny, and you’re just perfect.” I sat there, shocked, as Tobin dug around in her bag. She pulled out a shallow box, and opened it, revealing a rough-cut blue, purple, and magenta stone on a gold chain. 

“I’d really like to date you,” she said. “Will you go out with me?” 

“It would be an honor,” I replied. Tobin’s nervousness seemed to melt away. She grinned and clasped the necklace around my neck. She tilted my chin up and kissed me. I smiled, and kissed back. It was one of those kisses that you’d see in a cheesy rom com, the two of us silhouetted against the sunset, but we didn’t care. As far as we were concerned, we were the only two people in the world. Everything was perfect.


	12. The Team Finds Out

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The team is shocked that Tobin asked Thalia out.

Third Person P.O.V.

The next morning, Tobin was at the breakfast buffet when Thalia came downstairs. From where they sat at a table, Alex, Allie, Ash, and Ali watched as Tobin grinned at the young forward. The pair exchanged a few words, then Tobin kissed Thalia and went to find a seat. Everyone at the table looked at each other. 

“Did I just see what I think I saw?” Allie asked.

“I think so,” Ash said. “Tobin Heath-- our Tobin, who has never wanted a relationship-- just kissed Thalia Skywalker.”

“Okay, good,” Alex said. “So I’m not going crazy.”

“Oh, you may be,” Ali said. “This might be one of those shared delusion things.” Tobin came over and sat down at the table. 

“Hey, guys!” she said. 

“You kissed Thalia,” Ash said.

“And a good morning to you too, Ashlyn Harris,” Tobin replied.

“Did you or did you not?” Alex asked.

“I did,” Tobin said. “So?” everyone else gaped at her.

“So you were the one who never wanted a relationship because soccer was more important,” Allie said. Tobin shrugged. 

“I changed my mind,” she said. “You know, like you did when you decided you liked Alex better than Bati. I can change my mind.” Thalia came over and sat down next to Tobin. 

“Hey, you guys!” she chirped.

“You seduced Tobin,” Alex said.

“Alex, shut  _ up _ !” Tobin said. “This isn’t that weird!”

“Yes it most definitely is!” Alex said. “You said you’d never date anyone!”

“And Harry said she was straight for seven years!” Tobin retorted. Thalia laughed. 

“Actually, she asked me,” she said. “So technically, she was the one doing the seducing.” 

“Whatever,” Alex said. “It’s still weird.” by the time the team boarded the bus for practice, the news had spread around the team like wildfire. Tobin Heath and Thalia Skywalker were a couple. On the bus, Hope pulled Pinoe aside.

“If you post anything about them being together on social media, I’ll kill you,” she warned.

“Geez,” Pinoe said. “Someone’s overprotective.”

“Megan, I’m serious!” Hope snapped. “Thalia has enough on her plate without having to worry about the hate that will inevitably come her way if you post anything!”

“Okay, okay!” Pinoe said. “Chill out, mama bear. I won’t post anything.” she smirked up at Hope, her arms crossed. “You really care about the kid, don’tcha?” she asked. 

“Yeah, I care about her,” Hope said. “She’s my teammate, and she’s just a kid. Of course I care.”

“No, you  _ actually _ care about her,” Pinoe said. “You’re acting all motherly and shit.” 

“Shut up, Rapinoe,” Hope growled, shoving Pinoe into a seat. She went back to sit next to Carli, who had heard everything.

“She’s right, isn’t she,” the midfielder said softly. Hope groaned. 

“Yeah, she’s right,” she said. “It’s just… she’s so small and young and innocent, and she doesn’t have parents or anyone to look out for her.” 

“She doesn’t?” Carli asked, surprised.

“No,” Hope said. “Her parents died when she was eight, and she’s been on her own ever since. I want to be there for her, Car! I want to be able to help her and comfort her when she needs it and guide her through life!” her voice dropped to barely a whisper. “I want to give her all the things my parents couldn’t give me,” she said. Carli hugged her.

“Maybe you could adopt her,” she suggested.

“I don’t know,” Hope said doubtfully. “People might hate on her for that too. I don’t have the best relationship with the fans.”

“Hope, baby, people are going to hate on her for existing,” Carli said. “You can’t stop the hate. You can just help her through it.”

“I guess you’re right,” Hope sighed. Carli took her hand. 

“Let’s worry about this later,” she said. “Let’s just practice for now.” Hope smiled at her. 

“Okay,” she said. After practice, the team had recovery. While some took ice baths, others swam around in the pool. Thalia and Tobin were part of the latter group, laughing and splashing each other. Hope and Carli watched from their ice bath.

“I’m glad Tobin finally got the balls to ask her,” Carli commented. “They’re really cute together.”

“Yeah,” Hope said absentmindedly. 

“You’re still thinking about her, aren’t you?” Carli said.

“Yes,” Hope confessed. 

“She seems to be doing just fine on her own,” Carli pointed out. 

“Yeah, she’s doing fine now, but what if something happens and she’s not fine?” Hope said. “What if she needs help, and the closest teammate is three hours away in Kansas City?” 

“Hope, if this bothers you so much just adopt her!” Carli said. 

“Maybe she doesn’t want her to be adopted,” Hope said. 

“So talk to her about it,” carli said. “And stop losing sleep over it. She’s gonna be fine. She’s happy with Tobin.” Hope watched as Tobin picked up the small forward and dunked her in the water. Thalia emerged, laughing as she splashed Tobin.

“I guess you’re right,” Hope said. “As always.” she kissed Carli and smiled.

“I love you,” she said.

“I love you too,” Carli replied.


End file.
